Consumer Caution, Political Friction Could Weigh on Economy in Coming Months

The U.S. economy continued to plod along in the third quarter as businesses cut investments and consumers moderated their spending. And given the government shutdown and debt-ceiling drama at the start of the current quarter, there is little reason for a pickup in growth before the end of the year, economists say.

The Commerce Department estimated Thursday that the U.S. gross domestic product—the sum of all goods and services produced in the economy—grew at a 2.8% annualized rate in the quarter that ended Sept. 30. That...